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The Last Magician
Lisa Maxwell's The Last Magician is a New York Times Best Seller that will keep you on the edge of your seat! Back Cover Description: Stop the Magician. Steal the book. Save the future. In modern-day New York, magic is all but extinct. The remaining few who have an affinity for magic—the Mageus—live in the shadows, hiding who they are. Any Mageus who enters Manhattan becomes trapped by the Brink, a dark energy barrier that confines them to the island. Crossing it means losing their power—and often their lives. Esta is a talented thief, and she’s been raised to steal magical artifacts from the sinister Order that created the Brink. With her innate ability to manipulate time, Esta can pilfer from the past, collecting these artifacts before the Order even realizes she’s there. And all of Esta’s training has been for one final job: traveling back to 1902 to steal an ancient book containing the secrets of the Order—and the Brink—before the Magician can destroy it and doom the Mageus to a hopeless future. But Old New York is a dangerous world ruled by ruthless gangs and secret societies, a world where the very air crackles with magic. Nothing is as it seems, including the Magician himself. And for Esta to save her future, she may have to betray everyone in the past. Plot: Esta is a thief and a Mageus. After nearly exposing herself and her kind in a high-stakes robbery, Esta is determined to prove herself to the Professor, the only fatherly figure she has in her life. The Professor reveals his plans for Esta, a plan to steal the Ars Arcana, a book that is rumored to hold the secrets of magic itself. Esta learns that the Book could also be the key to destroying The Brink, a magical barrier created by The Order to trap all magical beings in New York City. In order to retrieve the book, however, Esta will have to travel back to 1902 and stop The Magician, a Mageus who disappeared with The Book and all its secrets. But Old New York proves to be a ruthless place, even to someone as gifted as her. Unkown to her, using her affinity could mean death if traced by The Order, and Esta is only saved when a mysterious man saves her from their watchful eyes. But when Esta injures a man with close relations with The Order, Dolph Saunders grants her protection, so long as she brings in enough pay to earn her keep. After assisting Dolph in a successful robbery in which they stole priceless artifacts from The Order, Dolph grows to trust Esta and assigns her with the task of recruiting Harte Darrigan to assist them in stealing The Book from The Order. Meanwhile, Harte Darrigan is trying everything to shake Dolph Saunders from his tail. No matter what Dolph offers, Harte isn't interested in his plan to steal The Book from The Order, and would rather continue his career as a stage magician. But Harte may find himself in deep trouble when he recognizes a familiar face in his audience: the girl he saved from The Order. After visits from gang-members who threaten his mother, It isn't long before Harte agrees to meet with Dolph about stealing The Book. The pair strikes up a deal, in which it is decided that Esta will be staying in Harte's apartment until the deed is done. Harte takes advantage of the situation and makes Esta his new stage assistant. Jack Grew, one of Harte's friends and member of The Order has taken a special interest in Harte's new stage assistant after she claims to be the long-lost daughter of a renowned Alchemist. Jack plans to build a largescale machine that will exterminate all Mageus in the city. His only problem—he can't isolate an element vital to his machine and needs the assistance of an Alchemist to help him do so. Still oblivious of both Harte and Esta's true intentions, Jack invites the pair to perform at Khafre Hall, the headquarters of The Order. Now, Dolph's team executes a seemingly flawless plan to steal The Book, that is until Viola, Dolph's trusted assassin kills Harte after he refuses to hand it over to her. Viola returns and announces that she has The Book, and killed Harte Darrigan to get it. They return, ready to deliver The Book to Dolph, but are devastated to learn that he was shot and killed while they were gone. Nibsy, Dolph's trusted right-hand man, insists they that continue on without him, only to find that Viola had never recovered The Book in the first place. Using his affinity, Harte had deceived Viola's mind into thinking that she had killed him and taken The Book. Upon touching The Book, Harte learned that destroying The Brink would only destroy all the Mageus, and he is determined to never let that happen. Now that he knows the truth about The Brink, Harte plans to jump from the Brooklyn Bridge in order to finish The Book once and for all. Before he can end his life, he gives Esta The Book and she returns to the future, certain that Professor Lachlan will know what to do. However, the Professor's ulterior motives are revealed when Esta hands over The Book, and in an attempt to obtain all of its power, he plans to sacrifice Esta. He explains how Esta was born of Dolph and Leena, back in 1902, and had been sent to the future as a part of his plan to obtain all the power The Book holds. Using the key artifacts Esta had stolen over the years, he plans to sacrifice her and absorb The Book's power. When the sacrifice fails, the Professor angrily insists it is because there is not enough magic left within their world for it to succeed. He forces her to return to the past, explaining that, because he can see everything the future holds, there is nothing she can do to stop him. Esta returns to the bridge, where she finds that Harte had only faked his death to force her to leave and create a better future.